HOLLYWOOD STARS SPARKLE AT THE CLOSING CEREMONY OF THE CANNES FILM FESTIVAL

May 20, 2001May 20, 2001, 11:00 PM GMT+1

Stifling her grief over the death of her father Peter, Melanie Griffith appeared in glamorous form at the closing ceremonies at Cannes to give and receive awards. On Saturday night celebrities including Rosanna Arquette and director and jury member Terry Gilliam gathered to fete the Lolita star as she received a special award for her 27-year acting career.

Dressed in a low-cut purple gown, Melanie took to the podium and fondly remembered her father, who died last Monday of complications from emphysema. Holding back tears, she said: “I know you’re out there, old cowboy, asking me, ‘Why are you wearing that dress?”. A group of 180 dined at a dinner in her honour following a screening of her 1988 hit Working Girl.

While A-list celebrities largely shied away from Cannes this year, the stars came out in force on Sunday night as Italy’s Nanni Moretti took home the coveted Palm d’Or for his tragic film The Son’s Room. Antonio and Melanie presented the top prize at the closing ceremony, with Jodie Foster awarding the best director trophy to two Americans, Joel Coen for The Man Who Wasn’t There and David Lynch for Mulholland Drive.

“I really like Joel and Ethan Coen so it’s a great honour to share this with them,” says Lynch of Twin Peaks fame. Lynch won the Palm d’Or in 1990 for Wild At Heart. Oscar winners Joel and Ethan Coen also have a Palm d’Or on the mantle having won in 1991 for Barton Fink.

The French-language film The Piano Teacher took home the Grand Jury Prize – the festival’s second highest honour – as well as two nods for both best actress and best actor. “The fact that this film got three prizes is incredible,” Austrian director Michael Haneke said. “I am very, very moved.”

Norwegian actress and acclaimed director Liv Ullmann headed up the jury, replacing Jodie Foster who backed out of the prestigious post to film David Fincher’s The Panic Room. Insiders predicted a more commercial film like Baz Luhrmann’s Moulin Rouge with Nicole Kidman might have triumphed; however, the eagerly-anticipated musical failed to notch a gong.

Melanie Griffith and Antonio Banderas added some Hollywood glamour to the Cannes closing ceremony on Sunday

Melanie and her husband presented Italy’s Nanni Moretti with the coveted Palm d’Or for his tragic film The Son’s Room

The original Working Girl received a special award for her 27-year career at a dinner on Saturday night

During her acceptance speech Melanie fondly remembered her father who died recently of complications arising from emphysema

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